By Ray Theiler, Project Engineer and Ryan Spencer, Sr Environmental Scientist, WSB

The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden late last year, provides a meaningful opportunity for communities across the country to invest in essential water infrastructure and address key challenges related to poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination and other emerging contaminants like manganese and nitrates.

There are thousands of PFAS chemicals, and high levels in our water supplies can cause risk to human health, as well as environmental risks. But removing these chemicals from drinking water can be a serious cost to local governments, as they often have to monitor contamination levels and either retrofit or build new treatment facilities to manage it.  

The majority of the money over the next five years will go through existing Drinking Water State Revolving Funds. This is on top of existing dollars.

Protecting water resources and providing clean water is a critical role of local government, but it also can come with significant financial costs. For that reason, communities should be looking at how to take advantage of this historic investment in infrastructure and tap into funding opportunities.

Where to start? Here are a few tips.

• Be proactive and get on the appropriate Project Priority List.

This is the first step that every community should take. The Project Priority List (PPL) ranks projects with respect to other proposed projects and that will be ready for construction within the next five years. Communities must be on a PPL to become eligible for state revolving funds to help with clean water and drinking water projects.

• Put together your plans and specifications.

Once a community is on the PPL, the next step is to put together a schedule, plans and specifications. Consultants can help communities navigate planning and design projects that meet their specific needs.

• Request to be placed on appropriate Intended Use Plan.

If a community expects to be ready for construction and is seeking state funding, their projects need to be placed on the appropriate Intended Use Plan (IUP). The IUP identifies projects that are on the PPL and are eligible for state revolving funding.

• Make sure your project meets all criteria for funding.

Don’t forget that throughout this process, it’s important to make sure your plans and specifications include all necessary criteria for project funding like using iron and steel products produced in the United States. Additional requirements are expected to be announced by state agencies in the near future as they finalize grant application processes and criteria.

For communities who may feel overwhelmed, or not quite sure where to start, WSB can help whether it’s filling out a PPL application, navigating environmental impacts, or designing a project. The federal infrastructure bill is a historic opportunity to advance clean water projects across the nation and improve the health of our environment and communities.

By Morgan Dawley, Sr Director of Municipal, WSB

2022 is here, and many state and local leaders are eyeing how the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, passed late last year, can help fund priority projects. While there are still some questions to be answered on how funding will come down and what final projects will be chosen, there are significant opportunities across the country, and things community leaders can be doing now to give them a leg-up.

Here’s how to start.

Think Big.

You may have a list of projects you are working to advance, but don’t be limited by your list. Because of the size and breadth of this funding package, this is a chance to think big. Rather than looking at what projects may be most eligible for capital funding, pause and take a larger look at the needs of the community. Additionally, with so many different categories within the bill – traditional infrastructure, sustainability, cyber security, reconnecting communities and more – how you approach the scope of your project could help tap into new opportunities to secure funding.

Similarly, if you have a project that is already on a high-priority list, don’t miss out on the chance to use the Infrastructure Bill to fill funding gaps or expand the scope of the project!

And as you think big on what the Infrastructure Bill can do, it’s also critical to

Bring Stakeholders Together to Explore What the Community Needs.

Approaching community needs in a holistic way means bringing multiple stakeholders together to talk about what opportunities are out there, and what priorities should be advanced. Elected leaders, state and local agencies, engineers, public works, local business owners and the public are just some of the voices you can bring to the table. If you have strong stakeholder support, it can put your project in a better place to secure funding.

Furthermore, with a greater emphasis on community solutions that address the needs of low-income and traditionally underserved populations, viewing infrastructure projects from various lenses can not only solve big community problems – but put your project in a better position to receive funding. For instance, the legislation includes $1 billion to reconnect communities that have been divided by past infrastructure projects.

A variety of voices and stakeholder support is important, and there may be a project or objective that you didn’t think could be tackled until further in the future, but there is an opportunity to advance it now.

Engage Your Neighbors.  

Similar to engaging various stakeholders, looking at bigger projects that may span multiple communities could provide a significant advantage. Multiple local funding sources, as opposed to one, demonstrates collaboration and can help lock in dollars for bigger projects that serve multiple communities and more people.

Consult with the Experts

At WSB, our job is to help our client connect the dots between their vision and reality. We have an in-depth understanding of not only planning and designing projects, but also tapping into diverse funding sources, engaging with the community to advance a project, and solving the complexities that come with engineering projects. What a community may think of as a simple street repair project could have implications for sustainability, clean water and more. Understanding and tapping into every opportunity possible is key!

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Want even more information on the Infrastructure Bill? Check out WSB’s other piece on what’s in the bill here.

By Monica Heil, Vice President of Municipal Services, WSB

On Monday, November 16, President Biden signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act into law. This $1.2 trillion package, which includes $550 billion in new federal spending over the next five years, gives local and state governments significant opportunities to fund infrastructure improvements over the next several years.

What’s in the Bill?

For communities and states eyeing dollars for projects, here are some highlights of what is included in the bill:

• $110 billion for roads and bridges
• $39 billion for public transportation
• $66 billion for railways
• $73 billion for power grid upgrades
• $7.5 billion for EV charging stations
• $50 billion to address cybersecurity and to fight the effects of climate change, including dollars for flood mitigation and drought preparedness
• $55 billion for clean drinking water, water and wastewater infrastructure including replacing lead pipes and addressing chemicals
• $1 billion to reconnect communities that have been divided by past infrastructure projects
• $11 billion for transportation safety

What is the Timeline?

States and communities across the nation have a laundry list of projects and priorities that they are hoping can be funded by this legislation. But what comes next, and when can local and state governments expect to see funding?

Federal money will be allocated through a variety of programs, mostly run by the U.S. Department of Transportation, as well as a handful of other federal agencies. There are two ways that most of the funding will then be disbursed to states – either annually through a formula or through a competitive grant program.

For the competitive grants, timing is unclear at this point as the Department of Transportation will have to set the criteria, then solicit and review applications from state and local governments before announcing the awards. This process could take several months.

For formula funding, dollars may begin to go out as soon as in the next few weeks and are expected to be distributed over the next six months. Funding that goes into existing federal programs with formulas already in place, as well as certain more basic projects like resurfacing, improving roadways, bridges, and transit, are expected to see dollars faster than more complicated capital projects or ones that require new rulemaking.

What’s Next?

Communities can begin preparing now to tap into funding for infrastructure improvements and take advantage of new spending.

One thing to note is that once dollars are allocated to states from the federal government, they will have quite a bit of flexibility on how those dollars are spent. Many state departments of transportation have funding priority lists, and in some states, legislatures or other local entities may try to earmark projects.

At WSB, we help many clients tap into grant funding, and have resources from the community level to planning to design and construction. For local communities vying for community projects – whether it’s road construction, transit, wastewater, clean energy projects, etc., it’s critical to ensure you have as much information as possible prepared and stakeholder support so you can apply for grant-based funding quickly when parameters and deadlines are announced. This will help put your project in a strong position.

What’s clear is that this $1.2 trillion package will catapult many essential and innovative projects forward, positively impacting local communities, residents, and businesses, promoting clean water and energy investment, and making critically needed improvements to our nation’s infrastructure.